Energy use rose faster in April due to factory demand

Taiwan's energy use rose at the fastest pace in 10 months in April, because of increased demand from manufacturers such as Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化).

Energy demand climbed 6.3 percent from a year earlier to the equivalent of 8.84 million kiloliters of oil, after increasing 3.1 percent in March, the Bureau of Energy said. The growth pace was the fastest since the 7.4 percent gain last June.

Manufacturers such as Formosa Petrochemical used more energy as they increased production to meet demand for clients abroad.

Export orders in April surged 19 percent from a year earlier to US$24.7 billion, the second-highest on record, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said on May 23.

"Petrochemical makers burned more coal, partly because of recovering demand," Wei Juen-shen (韋潤生), a planning official at the energy bureau, said in a telephone interview from Taipei yesterday.

"They also needed more petroleum products," he said.

Formosa Petrochemical's April sales increased 20 percent from a year earlier, after climbing 13 percent in March, according to filings to the Taiwan Stock Exchange.

Taiwan consumed 16.9 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in April, 3.6 percent more than a year earlier. Industrial and energy companies accounted for 60 percent of the consumption, the bureau said on its Web site. During the first four months of the year, energy use reached the equivalent of 34.4 million kiloliters of oil, an increase of 3.2 percent from a year earlier.

The information and electronics industry consumed 15 percent more energy in the four months than during the same period last year, while chemical makers used 5.4 percent more, the bureau said.

Crude oil imports fell 5 percent in April from a year earlier to 5.03 million kiloliters, while petroleum product shipments surged 99 percent to 1.14 million kiloliters, the bureau said.

Formosa Petrochemical and Chinese Petroleum Corp (中油) processed 4.9 million kiloliters of crude oil in April, 6.2 percent less than a year earlier, the bureau said. Formosa Petrochemical cut back on refining because it shut a unit for an upgrade to boost capacity.

Coal imports rose 2.3 percent to 5.23 million tonnes in April. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) purchases increased 3.5 percent to 821 million cubic meters, the bureau said. In the January-April period, imports of crude oil declined 6.4 percent and LNG purchases rose 11 percent. Coal imports fell 2.1 percent.